Hypothyroidism

My Specialist just called. My viral load is still negative (YAY!!!) however my thyroid is under-active which is explaining the major fatigue, body aches, and probably quite a few other symptoms. He said the last time they tested my thyroid levels (Oct) they were "normal" however I recall seeing my naturopath in Nov and after reviewing my results she told me that they were not good but still in an acceptable range to a doctor of western medicine and therefore they wouldn't do anything about it. Looks like she was right! At this point he is not having me take action just yet. He said since it is a side effect of treatment my levels may very well return to normal. So, Feb 27th I will be going back for blood work and we will take it from there. I actually feel at ease knowing this. I found it maddening to feel more tired and in more pain AFTER treatment had ended than while I was on treatment. Thank god there is a reason for all of this. I really started to feel like I was going insane.

Side Effects

For anybody interested in better understanding the general side effects of the type of interferon I was taking, here is a link to the Mayo Clinic. http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/drug-information/DR602541/DSECTION=side%2Deffects

Doctor Visit and Disability

Monday at 3pm I went for my second to last visit with my GI specialist. To date, all blood work has come back exactly as they need it to and on July 23rd I will see him for hopefully the last time, at least for 19 years when he says I should come back for a colonoscopy... thanks doc! ;)

If my viral load is still undetectable 6 months after treatment I will be considered CURED!!

Monday I felt extremely tired, disoriented and extremely sore. Yesterday I seemed fine and today I'm very achy and tired again. The doctor did inform me that the fatigue takes 1-3 months on average to completely go away. He thinks it would be good for me to take another month off work see how my body decided to bounce back and take it from there.

I talked to Long Term Disability today. My case manager said he will request the notes from Monday's visit and likely just follow up with me sometime in mid-Feb to see how I'm doing. As much as I'd like to think I would just bounce right back and be ready to return to work I'm glad that my doctor and disability case manager alike are not trying to rush this process. It's going to take as long as it's going to take which is something I'm still coming to terms with.

This seems a little odd...

Here it is, a little over 48 hours since my last pills and over a week since my last shot and for some reason I feel absolutely horrible! I am dizzy, my body aches, and my stomach hurts. WTF?! Could it be that I know subconsciously this is how I "should" feel right now? Every Sunday/Monday for the last eleven months it has been guaranteed that I will not feel well but I honestly thought I wouldn't feel that way right now. Makes me wonder what I actually did expect and to be honest I have no idea. At least I know it will start getting better one of these days, hopefully my specialist can give me some idea of what that timeline might look like. Alright I suppose it is time to attempt sleep yet again. I've taken ibuprofen which hasn't helped my body aches at all but I'm going to attempt to believe it will kick in any moment and hopefully doze off into peaceful sleep.

It's been 344 days, thank god it's finally OVER!

From the first interferon shot to the final ribavirin pills I took tonight, treatment has lasted a total of 344 days!! A medical treatment full of harsh drugs, harsh side effects, and a lot of physical and emotional pain. That's 48 shots and 1,720 pills. Not to mention the daily anti-depressents, heartburn medication, endless amounts of ibuprofen or aleve and any other supplements such as multivitamins, iron pills, etc. The most trying eleven months of my entire life, hands down. I can't believe it's over!! I blood work done and see my specialist on Monday at 3pm. Assuming he tells me my results still look good I won't see him again for approximately 6 months. what a life changing event that is taking place. When I wake up in the morning I no longer have to think about treatment. I have to remember to ask the doctor how quickly he thinks the fatigue will start to subside if there is one side effect that has kicked my ass more than any that would be it. I would love to get on a regular sleeping schedule, go to the gym regularly and be able to work again! I look forward to returning to some form of normal life within the next couple of weeks to a month. On that note I can barely keep my eyes open and my body is sore and tired so I'm headed to bed... more after the doctor's visit on Monday!

body aches, body aches...

I can't help but wonder if this is the universes way of fucking with me? I have five days to go. FIVE DAYS! And tonight the body aches and headache have set in full force just like they used to. It happens every Sunday to some extent and maybe after 11 months I'm just used to it, but about an hour ago or so I started hurting and it's taking over my whole body. It's exactly the "flu like symptoms" they warn you about when discussing treatment. It feels ridiculous to even post about this seeing how treatment is SO close to being over but for the sake of having a blog and doing what I do, I felt the need to share. Besides, I fucking hurt and no matter what friends or family I complain to, not a single one of them can make me feel any better physically so I'll just vent away here! Time to take a bath and listen to some music, maybe curl up on the couch and just pass out. Somehow sleeping on my couch seems like a better idea than my bed at the moment, even with the absence of a television in my living room. Thank god this is almost over!

My Final Shot

Around 11:30pm 1/13/20012 I took what will hopefully be my last interferon shot, EVER! It's funny to me how easy it is to give myself shots now however eleven months ago I was more scared of giving myself a shot than the side effects. Of course I can see the underlying fear of not knowing what was going to happen probably played into that more than I realized at the time, but still.

Now the fear becomes going back into the real world. On the last day of treatment (Jan 20th) I will have been out of work exactly seven months. That is a trip! I feel so incapable of working it's bizarre! I'm doing my best to stay positive and remember that as my energy returns reentering the working world will not feel as difficult as I'm making it in my head. Today if I were to try to work a full eight hours I would die, been there, done that, we know this. Hopefully in a few weeks that will no longer be the case. I'm also excited to get back to the gym and hopefully have an appetite again which will help me eat more regularly. I have a new lease on life and I intend to use it to the fullest!

I still intend to update this blog at least for a little while to document how quickly side effects leave, or if they stick around, etc... While I won't have a truly clean bill of health for six more months I cannot express how excited I am to have the chapter of treatment over with. I don't take any of this for granted, I do know how blessed I am to have the chance to get well, but goddamn after the stress of nausea, fatigue, and muscle aches on top of all the insurance/work bullshit I've had to deal with over the last year I am very happy to move on to the next adventure!